A fundraiser in support of injured Cambridgeshire footballers Shaun Whiter and Joey Abbs has been given a boost thanks to a donation of a signed shirt from no less than Barcelona ace Lionel Messi.

The five-time Ballon D’or winner, who has scored more than 300 goals for the Spanish giants, has personally signed a 2016/17 Barcelona shirt.

It will be used to raise funds for the duo at Cambridge United Football Club’s upcoming #FootballFamilyDay on October 9.

The shirt will be auctioned after the tournament, which is set to involve Newmarket Town, Soham Town Rangers, Cambridge City and Fulbourn Institute.

The Argentine’s £29 million team mate Arda Turan has also provided a signed jersey for the auction, which will form one of the many fundraising activities on the day.

Barcelona star Lionel Messi has donated a signed shirt to the football fundraiser

The Barcelona duo follow a number of high profile clubs in supporting Shaun and Joey by donating exciting memorabilia.

Others include signed Liverpool, Tottenham, Chelsea and West Ham shirts, a Manchester United shirt signed by Wayne Rooney, a 2006 England shirt signed by John Terry and an England shirt signed by the entire current squad.

Jez George, Cambridge United chief executive, said: “It’s fantastic to see clubs of this magnitude supporting Shaun and Joey and the items they have donated will help us to raise a huge amount of money on the day.

“We now urge as many people locally, within and outside the football community, to come along to the event to support these two brilliant young men.”

More items are expected to be added to the auction, with all proceeds raised going towards Shaun Whiter and Joey Abbs after they were injured in car accident in July.

Shaun’s injuries were so severe he had to have both his legs amputated below the knee.

A tournament between the four local clubs, whose teams will consist of current players and club legends, will form the main entertainment on the day before the auction and a raffle which will take place in the evening inside Cambridge United’s Premier Travel Hospitality Suite.

The first game kicks off at 1pm, with the final at 3pm and the auction expected to begin at 5pm.